The Best Ball Yet
by SirVacuumThe3rd
Summary: Sherlock and John attend balls, but why does Sherlock keep going if he does nothing but sulk about? And what can John do to stop him from pouting all night long? Slash. Slight Au.


"Well if you're not going to dance, I will." John said, turning around and leaving Sherlock to sit and watch the couples move about the room.

"Fine by me." Sherlock replied bitterly, watching John mill about the room. He sat down in a wooden chair in the back corner of the ball room, watching all of the fancy, stupid people waste their time dancing with strangers.

_What idiots._ Sherlock thought to himself._ They waste their time in such petty amusements. There is so much __**more**__ they could be doing with their lives!_

He sighed, his eyes following John across the room. _How does this entertain him? He is __**above**__ them, yet he finds the same happiness in dancing with them. God, I wish he wouldn't._

He laughed darkly at that, John was not his. He could not control him. He was the one person Sherlock could not trick, deceive, or fool. John didn't belong to him.

_He isn't mine. I can't make him do what I want, he does what he wants, even if they are stupid, vile, idiotic things. Such as dancing._

He watched with a deep frown when John and a nice woman stepped onto the floor hand in hand. He saw John smile brightly at the woman, who blushed in return with a shy smile.

_Ugly woman. Doesn't have the right clothes. Is too shy. Can't remember the third step to this dance. Doesn't even __**know**__ John. And she has barely any idea what to do when graced with his attention._

Sherlock shook his head, trying to calm down before he stormed off from the ball. It was no use for him to get angry, but that never stopped him when it came down to John.

_That is disgusting. Look at them, he has his arm wrapped around her waist and she's smiling up at him while they dance around the room like no one else exists. I'm going to be sick at the sight._

Sherlock averted his gaze, trying to tune them out as he stalked over to the window angrily. He clenched his fists, staring out at the dark countryside stretching far off in the horizon.

_Calm down, Sherlock. It's just a dance, it's not like you haven't seen him dance at these before._

Sherlock grimaced, remembering all of the _other_ balls they had attended where John had danced with the same exact type of women over and over again throughout the night.

_I was still angry then, him dancing with those stupid women all night long like there was no tomorrow. I don't even think he even __**remembered**__ I was there._

"Sherlock?"

Sherlock spun around, seeing John standing behind him with a concerned look on his face.

"What do you want?" He spat out, his anger clear to John.

"Well, I _was_ checking on you. But you seem to be properly pissed right now." John said, walking closer to Sherlock, trying to keep their conversation from leaking around the room.

"Good observation." Sherlock said, his words dripping with sarcasm. "If you know that, you might want to get as far as physically possible from me right now."

"You know I won't do that." John said, smiling at the woman he was just dancing with as she walked by them. She smiled back, but quickly hurried off when she saw Sherlock.

"Sherlock!" John said, turning back to Sherlock. "You need to stop glaring at the people I've danced with!"

"Why?" Sherlock challenged.

"Because they've done nothing wrong! I don't see why you get into such a fuss every time we come to a ball! You don't dance, you don't laugh, you just sit in a corner angrily glaring at me and whoever I dance with! What's wrong, Sherlock? Am I not supposed to dance? What is it?" John stared at him, knowing Sherlock couldn't lie to him. "Because it seems to me that you don't want me to dance with people. All I do is dance with them, Sherlock! Nothing else. Why do you even come here if that's it? I don't need a chaperone to come here, yet you always come and sulk! I don't need you to be here if you're just going to be angry the entire time! I don't get it!"

"Exactly!" Sherlock's said, angrily glaring at John. "That's exactly what you don't get! You don't ever get it!"

"Get what?!"

"The fact of _why_ I'm angry!" Sherlock said exasperatedly. "You _never_ know why I'm angry with you when I come here! I would _love_ to dance John. Love to. I've said it is a 'meaningless waste of time', but I would _die_ just to dance one time. But, not with anyone here! Do get that? Not with anyone _here._"

John was silent, putting the pieces together. "Not with anyone...here?" He asked quietly, already trying to make sense of what Sherlock said.

"Not with anyone here." Sherlock repeated, turning back to the window. "Now that you know, you can go off and resume dancing with these ladies who are probably just _dying_ to dance with you."

"Sherlock." John warned. "Calm down, okay? Let me figure this out." He waited for Sherlock's reply, gaining a curt nod in reply. "So, you would like to dance, but not with anyone here, correct?"

"Correct." Sherlock replied, not turning around from the window. John walked next to him, looking out of the window with him.

"Which means that it would have to be someone you know. Which is...no one? Sherlock, you know no one here."

"False."

"How? Sherlock, who do you know here? These are all people we don't know."

Sherlock sighed. "You, John. I know you."

John stared at Sherlock, his face not giving anything away through that cold, hard mask of his. "Me?" John asked quietly, watching Sherlock closely.

"Yes, you." Sherlock said flatly, not even bothering to try and look at John.

"Me." John stated, wondering how this all played out. Sherlock wanted to dance with...him? What? Why? How? Why did he never notice? Why did he never put the pieces together? What on earth was he going to do now?

"Go." Sherlock's said calmly, not looking at John.

"Go?" John asked, surprised.

"Yes, John." Sherlock said coldly, finally turning to face John. John saw his clenched jaw, saw him desperately trying to push away his feelings. "Go. Away. Now."

"No." John said, not going to be shoved away that easily. This was Sherlock, and he could make it through this. "Dance with me."

Now it was Sherlock's turn to look surprised, openly staring at John. "Dance?"

"Yes, dance. With me." John said, uncurling Sherlock's clenched fist and holding his hand. "Come on," he eased, pulling Sherlock to the floor. "One dance. If that's what you want, I'm happy to oblige."

"John."

"Sherlock."

"Are you certain?"

"Am I asking you?" John asked with a smile. "I know you want to."

"Thank you." Sherlock said face tight and glancing around, still unsure if John was actually going to dance with him. They stopped at the floor, John stepping in front of him with a smile.

"Sherlock." John said, catching Sherlock's eye. "I'm here now, see? It's just you and me."

Sherlock smiled at that, lifting his hand up and laying it on John's shoulder as he felt John put his hand on the small of his back. He shivered a bit, never having danced before.

_What an idiot I am._ Sherlock thought. _How awful a person I was to him. I hope he knows I didn't mean it. Slightly. _

"Do you know what to do?" John asked. "I'm leading, so just follow my lead."

"Got it." Sherlock said, holding onto John a bit tighter as the music started.

John smiled, slowly starting the steps of the waltz, making sure that Sherlock was staying with him. "Good?" He asked, starting to step forward again.

"Yes." Sherlock said, smiling at John. "Can we go faster?"

John laughed. "Of course."

_This definitely won't be boring. _

John smiled as he started going faster, holding onto Sherlock tighter as they spun and glided across the room, oblivious to everyone else. Sherlock laughed, finally happy for once at a ball now that he was flying across the room in John's arms. He smiled at John, both of them smiling widely at each other as they spun.

"Sherlock," John said happily. "In a moment I'm going to dip you, okay?"

_Wait, What?!_

"I'm fine." Sherlock said, smiling as they continued to dance. He was anticipating the dip, wondering if John would be able to hold him up.

_It's John. You trust John. He won't drop you. _

"Get ready." John said, holding Sherlock tighter right before the music reached the crescendo. "Now!" He said, quickly dipping Sherlock down as he held him, smiling down at him. Sherlock looked up, surprised at John being able to hold him. He smiled, enjoying the view of John.

"Sherlock," John said, his grip firm even as he smiled. "Quit smiling at me like that, we're in public." He pulled Sherlock up, both of them blushing slightly as they walked off of the floor while everyone was clapping for the couples. John didn't let go of Sherlock's hand and Sherlock didn't let go of John's.

* * *

"Well," John said as they started walking down the lane outside. "That was fun and different." He smiled at Sherlock. "What do you reckon?"

"It was amazing." Sherlock said.

John laughed. "So, to get you to enjoy a ball, I only need to dance with you?" He smiled at him, starting to swing their hands.

"Seems so," Sherlock said with a smile. "But I have one last thing to do for this to be an amazing night."

"And what's that?" John said, smiling at Sherlock.

"This." Sherlock said before he turned and kissed John, wrapping his arms around his neck as he felt John's soft lips on his. He smiled at the warm feeling flooding through him, knowing that this is what he had wanted all along. He felt John wrap his arms around his waist, kissing him back tenderly as they stood in the middle of the lane with the moon above them, both perfectly content where they were.


End file.
